


Love At First Flight

by picassobaby



Category: EXO (Band), K-pop
Genre: Alternate Universe - Office, M/M, One Shot, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-29
Updated: 2017-01-29
Packaged: 2018-09-20 17:42:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,055
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9502826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/picassobaby/pseuds/picassobaby
Summary: Baekhyun is heading home after getting his heart broken. In the middle of whirling snowflakes and the biting cold, he finds warmth in the form of a businessman he spends the night with at the the airport. He figures they aren't always about goodbyes.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This was my entry to the KrisBaek Fic Exchange back in 2015

People easily come around—strangers walking into your consciousness without any intentions, staying a constant mystery as they walk away, writing lifelines along calendar days, and leaving miniscule marks. They come and go, and when they do they take with them a little part of each person they encounter for the first time as impressions; a smile, conversations overheard, a similar voice, and a reminder of a memory. It is subtle, discreet in its own way that nobody ever notices the cycle begin and end, until it hits you square in the face, an impact more powerful than pain.

The airport had mellowed down as crowds left for warmer places as the announcement of suspended flights rolled out. He sits down, facing the large tempered glass looking through his reflection and into the lights of the snow heavily falling over the cityscape that he was sure he’d miss, and would love to appreciate more intimately. A cup of coffee in hand and a bagel to go with, he contemplates whether this is a sign for him to not go back to his reality just yet. Baekhyun sips on the bitter coffee and burns his own tongue.

 

 

He watches the irony of heavy snowfall swirl like the lightest of confetti. The storm has yet to calm and brings the kind of feeling that keeps you halfway on edge and almost numb. Yifan knows the thought of having no choice but to sit back and do nothing is going to send him into a frenzy of worry amidst relaxation so he shrugs it off. His trip is already nothing short of hectic; of course, the weather _would_ pitch in.

He heaves a long sigh and rubs his palm over his face in frustration. A walk, he thinks that’d do him some good. It’s simple and therapeutic. It keeps him pondering and distracted, takes away the stress and holds him down—as if every step directs him toward his conclusions, and helped him with his decisions. As the airport is buzzing with sounds of goodbyes and homesickness, Yifan walks along the sidelines, hurried clacks against the marble floors zooming past him as he looks for a calmer place in the vicinity. He makes a turn, puts his things down on the carpeted floor before sitting against the cold blurry glass.

 

 

Winter is his favourite. Everyone is faceless behind thick, fluffy layers and he can pretend he’s invisible. Yifan likes to escape. Thinks that one can’t always just keep to a single track of reality, a boring one at that. He stares out and wonders, admiring the stark white ice piled on the ground against the dark skyline.

He needs more warmth. A soft sigh as he looks into the cup of chocolate that doesn’t any more suffice, it’s turned cold as well. He sips to comfort himself from this lonesome trouble of trying to get home. He never found the airport a very accommodating place. There is a hint of despair at the lounge as the hands of fate tangle up. Yifan is reminded of strangers, constant and fading.

Yifan is shocked to almost dropping the cup of chocolate when he hears a soft voice, then an attempt to hide laughter followed after his ungraceful reaction. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” The grin is playful, though, and he realizes that this man is speaking to him in heavily accented English.

“I-it’s alright, I guess… I should pay attention to my surroundings more, maybe.” Fingers run through his hair then scratch idly on his nape. He feels thrown off, back into his awkward pool, but he has on a genuine smile.

“I’m really bored and I bet flights would resume at morning so… I thought maybe you’re okay with talking?” A hopeful gleam looks up at Yifan. He observes the smaller man as discreetly as he can. He seems harmless and too tired, so he smiles again, sincerity spilling over.

“Sure, I’m Yifan, by the way,” he nods in greeting.

“I’m Baekhyun,” they shake hands, he chuckles and the sound that flows from his throat is nice, a resonating piece of intangible contentment you don’t mind hearing over and over. Yifan can only smile unconsciously at the tone of it. “I’ve been here since the afternoon. What about you?” He gets a hint that Baekhyun is most likely the type of person who can make anyone comfortable around him. A ball of positive energy that absorbs one into his cosy, teasing warmth and makes them stay there until they’re all better, longer if they wanted to.

“Arrived just in time for the bad news, and I wondered just why I didn’t bother to check any weather updates,” he lightly laughs it off. The feeling is way too foreign, he was never good at small talk but at least this conversation isn’t just about what he does for a living, or the weather, or fake mundane bullshit that people like to immerse themselves in when meeting other new people.

“Well, let’s hope we can fly out by morning, or at least, noon?” Baekhyun settles a decent distance away from where Yifan is slouched, his things a little pile to his other side as he leans back against them, “As much as going back to reality isn’t as pleasing as we’d like it to be?”

Yifan quietly exhales a breath he doesn’t know he is holding. His body relaxing against the glass as he turns to face Baekhyun and begin to let go of his worries for now.

Their smiles become comfortable as minutes float deeper into the night. Their eyes don’t meet while talking, a subtle shyness hangs, a reminder that they’ve just met a couple of hours ago. Their conversations weave out starting from quiet curiosity, in between interests and distracted thoughts, jumping too often from one topic to another never finishing any of their long stories from years back, learning of each other through most random things, they talk of ideas, and just plain old experiences, laughing louder at the cross of polite jokes and experimental teasing.

 

 

Yifan checks the time, more out of habit than need, it is 3:52 at dawn. No wonder it’s still dark out and a lot quieter than earlier that evening. The replenished cups of coffee sit in their hands idly, more for warmth than anything else. “What exactly brought you to Japan?” The more personal questions drop along the stream of conversations, the tiny steps that bring people in faster.

“Idealistic whims, maybe, I came here with my boyfriend—,” Baekhyun’s smile waivers of fondness and pain at the same time, yet he thinks back to those memory lots. His eyes are readable in the dim orangey light, Yifan looks at him empathically as he continues, “I’m going away, you know, when you read things like moving to cities where nobody knows who you are… I’m going to try that someday, I told myself once. And now might be the best time for that... If I’m truly brave enough alone.”

“Gonna go around to look for yourself?” he is dazed as his thoughts start to steadily flow in his head, fluid like neon in veins, mumbling softly into the puffy air, “Nothing like letting no one hold you back from anything at all, no inhibitions.” He sees Baekhyun nod in his peripheral, out of focus, yet the understanding was clear as a cloudless day. How do simple questions make you dig deep and how does one hold back from saying too much?

“Why did _you_ come to Japan?” Baekhyun guns the question back at him.

“Business,” He took a tentative sip, the beverage still a little too hot to drink. “You know when you’re at your prime age but you don’t have enough time to see what you want to see, and live how you want to live because you’ve become a corporate slave?” There is a hint of bitterness in his choked laugh. He clears his throat.

“Corporate slave, huh?” Baekhyun lightly teases, a slender finger playfully poking at the other man’s bicep, “But sometimes isn’t it more important to know if you are you where you’re supposed to be? Like stepping stones?”

“Yeah, though people’s priorities and short term goals have too much weight that it slows them down.” Yifan’s words, he thinks, should never leave his head. He always feels like the moisture that dampens fragile things. Unbleached courage and recycled papers of optimism. He doesn’t understand why he throws everything away like he doesn’t need them.

“But those are things that you can change and work around on, right?” There’s truth in what Baekhyun says, it puts an itch under his skin. Yifan nurses a subtle annoyance in not being able to scratch that stupid itch because he doesn’t even know where it lies. “What’s holding you back from changing?”

“I’ve settled,” he begins. Yifan doesn’t even want to figure out why he’s telling Baekhyun, someone who just happened to ask the right questions, “That’s probably the saddest part about it. It’s a little fancier than saying ‘I gave up on myself’.”

“Looks to me like you haven’t completely, though,” Baekhyun smiles, a little curve up on one side of his lips, almost a smirk, “You still dream of escaping, don’t you? Don’t even deny it.”

“You may be right about being idealistic,” he teases back, “but it’s true, of course. I dream, I’m tired, I have thoughts of what if’s swimming around in my head when I have the time but that doesn’t mean I’ll act on it.”

“Why not? Aren’t you a little too young to settle that way? You’ve looked into the future too much you live in your future self already,” his grimace spells uncertainty but Baekhyun knows he’s got a point.

“Maybe that’s just how it is, maybe that’s what expectations can do to you,” he chuckles and sips on the drink, it no longer burns. The warmth is evidence of how it’s been left to sit there for when you need to will away your own thoughts so they don’t swallow you whole. He shifts the tide the other’s way, “What are your plans now? You’re coming home, right?”

A loud sigh resonates and a soft grumble of being torn between wanting to go home and staying where he is, Baekhyun leans back against the glass right beside Yifan and looks at him, “I don’t really know or even feel a tinge of certainty about coming home,” he starts off, “I’ve met a lot of people since university and they’ve made me feel like family and more at home than when I’m with my actual biological family. That kind of thing…”

Yifan knows too well what Baekhyun means, his whole life he has only ever depended on himself because his family is too busy to mind him. He nods and looks at Baekhyun, observes as his thoughts visibly scramble in his head as he tries to sort them out.

“I want to go back and see my friends again, people I’ve left behind for something I thought would last longer than it did. Maybe, make plans of travelling more; see how they’re doing and all that, after that I’ll think of something. I’ve always been into things like design, clothes… things my father would never in this lifetime approve of.” Yifan stares. Baekhyun doesn’t mind that he’s reading into his thoughts based on his words, it’s as if he wanted to be read and see if he will be understood, “I want to do more than just be what I’m expected to become. I’m pretty sure I’ll get more than earfuls of I told you so when I get back. And— There’s just a lot that’s going to happen once I’m back home and thinking about it already tires me out.”

“I’m no good with words or feelings, but let me tell you—well, try to tell you something,” Yifan has seen this unfold time and again, “To hell with the _I told you so _.__ Look at me. I’m a product of that. Nobody told me that at the end of the day you don’t have obligations to take care of other people’s feelings and dreams. You’re in your selfish years so might as well be your most selfish self now than five to ten years later, when it’s too late to turn things around.”

Silence settles upon them a few long moments as Baekhyun stares at him half-minded.

“My parents wanted me to do business, so I did.” Baekhyun explains with a soft voice, as if asking for help, thinking of letting it all out because what has he got to lose? “It’s not so bad, the people I went with were great and they’re probably the reason I got through until I graduated. But I’m bad at it, I know, I couldn’t wrap my head around some things and it discouraged me heaps when I saw my friends absorb it all as if it’s all the easiest thing to understand. I always needed their help and I didn’t want to become a burden then, all the more do I not want to be one now. It can’t be that nothing has changed even after we all graduated.”

Yifan laughs lightly, “I’ll be honest with you because I highly doubt that they’d look at you like you’re even a hint of a burden. You’re probably one of the people they love having around and I am willing to bet they miss you. You give off that kind of vibe, you know?”

Baekhyun can feel his cheeks rise with a tinge of warm pink, his smile trembling because he’s trying not to grin too wide, “I hope so.” It was too soft, Yifan shakes his head as he stares at Baekhyun’s face, leaning forward a little, the other a little taken aback and leans back further, “What?”

“Come on, it’s not like nobody’s ever told you those things before,” Yifan turns and avoids his gaze, realizing what implications he might have made.

Baekhyun is the one to lean in this time and grins that awfully beautiful stretch of lips over perfect teeth at his face, “You’re hitting on me…” He lets out an obnoxiously teasing, noisy laugh, and his flirtatious side seeping out within the confines of their close proximity.

Yifan holds himself together to fight off an overwhelming warmth crawling up his neck, cheeks and ears, turns up his boss persona, flicks the corner of his lips up in a smirk as he firmly holds Baekhyun’s stare with his stern eyes, far away from his timid real self, “And you’re basking in the attention.” He raises a brow daringly and the smirk deepens.

The younger man had teasing under his sleeve ever since he was young, like he was born with that talent. But at the moment, he was nothing but mush under the gaze of Yifan, shrinking under intimidation.

Baekhyun falls back into his body when Yifan’s laughter rings in his ears, the occasional “Hey!” resounding too teasingly he can feel his the rush to his cheeks and ears. “Hey… Baekhyun?” The laughter and pokes to his waist fades and Yifan’s face turns sheepish and uneasy and honestly concerned, “Why are you doing that face?”

It is a rare but welcomed occasion that Baekhyun finds himself flustered. It is true; he is enjoying the company of this tall, attractive guy, even though it’s definitely going to appear as a hazy memory of a sad sleepless night at the airport. There were thoughts in the back of his mind that he doesn’t want to surface but they’re bubbling up as the hours pass. A grin makes its way to his lips and he chuckles, pretends he’s finding the play fighting funny when all he can laugh about is how stupid it would be to dislike that Yifan will walk away by morning.

On some days, the joke is on him. At least, nobody knows.

 

 

The sun is rising but it is difficult to see behind the looming freeze over. A hint of warmth comes from their smiles as they’ve moved to sit far from the mirror, still on the carpeted floor, they start playing a silly game of “Questions”.

“I’m quite happy we’re not at some club while playing this,” Baekhyun randomly remarks as he fights a yawn, while Yifan thought of his next question and they both laugh. Teary eyed from sleepiness, bodies tired from the cold-laden wait.

“Ah! Then, what questions would you have asked if we were at a club?” with a raised eyebrow he challenges the shorter man. He is beginning to get convinced that this was his kind of fun. He felt it might bore anybody with so much energy, someone who shone like the sun.

Baekhyun chuckles softly and says, “Don’t act like you don’t know, I’m pretty sure you go out and have people approaching you—or if I may be more accurate, throwing themselves at you. You’ve got basically the whole ideal package going on.”

“But isn’t ideal subjective?” Yifan teases more, “Don’t people have different ideals? Are you as good as drunk when sleepless?” He feels Baekhyun fall to his side, the warmth and deadweight tearing him apart between pushing the man off of him and letting him sleep on his lap.

Baekhyun shrugs and eventually buries his face into Yifan’s thigh, “You’re so warm, also it’s my turn to ask a question,” he mumbles and stretches his legs and arms as he lay completely on the floor.

“Come on, you can’t fall asleep now,” a sleepy laugh makes it out of his lips and he leans a little bit forward and looks at Baekhyun’s serene face, “We’ll probably board soon, we’ll have to watch out for the announcements.”

Baekhyun reaches up to pat the top of Yifan’s head and chuckles softly, “Let’s take a nap, I’m too tired to drag myself down into the crowd that will be there once the flights resume.” He grabs a hoodie from his pile of belongings and drapes it over himself, covering his face from the rising sun’s hopeful rays.

Yifan sighs and leans back against the glass pane and puts his hands in his jacket pockets, closing his eyes as well. He is fading. And with a low hum he thinks, “Wake me up before you go…”

The hum of a response goes unheard.

 

 

Baekhyun wakes up to the sound of faraway padded footsteps of the incoming crowd. As he looks around, recalling where he is, he sits up and faces the glass panels. The morning is pretty friendly, sunlight barely stinging through fluffed morning clouds. At least the snow had stopped.

Mornings with strangers have never felt safe. And as passive his interaction with Yifan had been all night, he knows he would prefer waking up to him on an airport floor than sneaking out of an unfamiliar bedroom. He looks at the sleeping man leaning against the metal beam. His ashy light blond hair looked convincingly angelic over those closed eyes. Baekhyun sighs and shakes off the crumbling he feels in his chest as wishes bubble up at the bottom of his mind.

Yifan is greeted by the smell of fresh brewed coffee and the smile of a new acquaintance that managed to fill his dreams. His lips turn up at the edges unknown to him as he adjusts his seating. With a soft hoarse voice still laced with sleepiness, he asks about how Baekhyun’s sleep had been. Yifan’s eyes are bright underneath hooded stares. Baekhyun, being the ray of sunshine that he is, warms up to those looks and sneaks into the cozy comfort of this prospect of attention.

His first sip of coffee is bittersweet as any beginning of an impending goodbye. The conversation is lithe with hints dropped like parachutes landing on uncertainty, hands clammy with holding back from holding onto tiny moments.

 _Do you think maybe we’ll meet again somehow?_ Glimpses catch on quicker than the flicker of hope when their eyes meet. Yifan saunters into the hollow bit of Baekhyun’s existence and basks in the idea that he could be alone in there. “I have Korea on my list of business trips. I think halfway through the year,” He says with a smile, Baekhyun smiles back.

 

 

Coming back and falling into a new routine let him move on easier than he thought. It was a bad first couple of weeks—rekindling a past that has gone to let a few people know why he returned. It’s a little unnerving. His little to zero expectations hasn’t at all been a let down. And, to his surprise, his mother has been very supportive. Often meeting over lunch in between work schedules, or coming home on the weekends to spend time with everyone greatly encouraged him to straighten out his current short-term goals and reorganize his plans.

Being able to settle into a very grounding daily life gives him a lot more time to think, rethink, and over think. Baekhyun has come to realize that his age is catching up to him as responsibilities and terms of being a free spirit have changed some ways for him to stay upright in his roots to grow. He finds himself scrolling past articles on social media feeds and wondering why he chose to come home instead of travel after leaving Japan. He could have gone somewhere else out of sheer impulse. He was sure it would be far more exciting than a nine-to-five job.

 

 

Baekhyun is coming into terms with the truth that it was a bittersweet parting. Knowing himself as a hopeless romantic, he believed everything to be going fine. Living together for the longest time made him relaxed. The convenience of having someone to come home to had him forgetting a tiny detail that will always be important for any relationship to work out. He thinks back quietly days after coming home. When was the last time he had really asked Joonmyun if he was alright? When was the last memory of them talking about the depth of their feelings whether sober or after a few too many glasses of wine? If they still see each other in their future? Maybe, for reasons that it felt foolish, he hadn't had the courage to bring it up. To him, asking might mean doubt. He believed that since they were still together, they're still how they've always been. The underlying confidence of having Joonmyun with him until they grow old had blocked his hindsight.

 

_He had known Joonmyun for almost a decade. Starting off as acquaintances, they'd first met at parties of common friends. He wasn't a very outgoing guy but he had a life where he had fun on his own terms. It was his quiet disposition that had interest Baekhyun in the beginning, a typical mysterious boy that had been appeasing to unfold. Every time things would take a deeper turn, he'd bask in knowing there are things about Joonmyun that he only shares and opens up about with him._

_It was a violent whirlwind that stormed up way too quickly in the middle of the sea. He didn't know what to feel first when the calm broke off and he had taken in what Joonmyun had brought up. There wasn't a hint of pain while they had dinner. The mundane everyday topics they usually pondered were out of mind but the quiet wasn't awkward. He simply thought it was one of those nights when they were both physically tired._

_"Baek," Joonmyun's voice was soft, he sounded exhausted and it irked him that he'd only ever say he's fine even if he wasn't, “What do you see yourself as in the next… Say, three to five years?”_

_He took everything in stride, it wasn’t an odd question but it made him think, “Probably still working an office job. I mean, it’s not that far ahead but I’m thinking I’d have a decent amount of savings that won’t have me worrying like when we were starting out. Maybe, in another country with you, possibly back home and be with our friends and family again. Something of that sort, I guess. At least, that’s what I want.”_

_Joonmyun looked at him with unreadable eyes, Baekhyun’s soft laughter died in his throat._

_“What’s wrong?” Baekhyun said. Nerves concealed under concern._

_“I’m afraid, I won’t be able to keep our promises,” Joonmyun looked away from him when he sensed Baekhyun search his eyes, “I’ve been thinking a lot and figured how much a whole lot of things have changed for me.”_

_“In other words…?” Baekhyun didn’t want to hear it but he needed to—unfabricated, no sugar coating. He had the idea at the top of his head. They both knew where the pages had turned, “You know me, and what I’d rather hear.”_

_The pleading look on Baekhyun’s face made Joonmyun waiver. But he knows better than to skirt around what needs to be said._

_Baekhyun was empathetic and he would almost always already know. Joonmyun knew that it wouldn't make any difference. It's what had him contemplating for a while, the thought of being the one to cause Baekhyun a feeling he did not deserve to feel. But he also knew that it wouldn’t be fair either if he continued to pretend that things are the same when they have drastically changed. He just wished they both knew how and when it all began._

_Baekhyun discovered how it felt to be peeled off of someone’s life. He’s now a mere memory that would not be relived. He kept his feelings to himself because it’s far too late to try again. He might feel it’s unfair, but there’s no point if you weren’t given any chance to redeem yourself. He was given but a moment of warning before that long running chapter died a seemingly natural death. Even if he strongly felt he deserved a better ending, he chose to simply walk away. Joonmyun will not see him cry._

 

It's never fair, Baekhyun concludes. When only one of them falls out and the other is left hoping and doubting, looking back and wondering where they let go of each other’s hand as they walked, then eventually drifted apart as they went further. He understands perfectly and is convinced that he would not find it in himself to blame Joonmyun. At least, he never lied, he always tells himself.

 

 

Snow days have gone. The airport has never been the same since the night he got stranded in Narita with a certain Korean boy shining a light on his boring work-driven life. Here he was again, on another business trip, far more lengthy than the last and filled with much more uncertainty as much as responsibilities. He feels himself grow older just by the mere thought of it all. Yifan walks to the exit and readies himself. He greets his new company with confidence and well-practised handshakes and bows.

 

 

For weeks, Baekhyun has been constantly hearing about the hype surrounding the new lifestyle luxury street wear brand from China opening its very first flagship store in Seoul. His curiosity has him looking it up online and is pretty shocked to have found such a young brand make its remarkable impact on the international industry had involved crossing over to Hong Kong, Japan, Los Angeles, and now moving into South Korea. The new generation of young celebrities from the east to the west have been excited for the up & coming designers that the gallery housed.

He simply wants in and starts thinking about it over and over. He has enough Marketing knowledge, and more than enough love and passion for clothes to want this more than anything. He would choose to work in fashion, even from a business perspective, more than anything.

After a whole weekend of researching and preparing a focused creative resume, he finds himself perched on a couch in the waiting area of a very modern building in Gangnam. He studies his surroundings and tries not to feel too small. The seconds tick by slowly like each of them want to stretch into minutes, and the minutes don’t want to end. He was 15 minutes early for his appointment and it made him a little antsy.

 

 

Yifan types into his phone right as he steps into the vehicle waiting for him outside the hotel. He wills himself to have no expectations or anything but still, he hopes.

_To: Byun Baekhyun_  
_08:45 AM “I’ve arrived in Korea!☺”_  
_08:45 AM “See you soon?”_  
_08:45 AM “By the way, I’m staying in Seoul for work.”_

It is farfetched that Baekhyun will still reply after almost two months of zero messages or social media updates.

_To: Byun Baekhyun_  
_08:47 AM “I’m sorry, I’ve just resurrected from the dead when I got here. I was buried in literal piles of work. ^_^”_

Minutes pass and he gets nothing. Yifan lets the thought go and starts reading through the documents his secretary handed over to him after giving him a summary of his schedule for the day.

 

 

Baekhyun steps out of the interview office. He’s equally ecstatic and nervous for what he’s expected to do for the rest of the day. As he is lead to another floor for a talent test, he runs his clammy hands down the front of his black jeans, giving himself a mental pep talk. His interests and background may land him a spot in the Visual Merchandising Department.

In a room full of clothes that have been out the previous seasons, he’s tasked to create five different looks to suite each function and target market. Baekhyun starts as soon as the stylist leaves to give him 45 minutes to complete the exam.

 

 

Yifan walks and shyly greets back other employees on the way as he saunters to his office at exactly 8:55 AM. Things set on the large slick black desk as he prepares the materials for the next meetings. There’s brunch in about an hour, a few resumes to look over before lunch, and if he has a half hour to spare, he’ll catch the meet & greet of the new interns and employees. And the go-see currently happening as well, which will all definitely help the company settle in new land.

His mind wanders off once he leans back to refresh his head for the meeting. He checks his phone and still nothing he only sees the time. It’s 10:08 AM.

His secretary knocks and enters as Yifan smiles, “What’s up? Are those more applicants?” The woman is impeccably dressed and she carries herself well. Yifan is convinced she hardly looks like his secretary but more like a business partner. Today, she is wearing a light cream boat-necked polyester top that reached down to her belly button and is layered with very lithe silk chiffon of the same color. Her skirt is black and covers her waist down to the top of her knees. Her blazer is an off white linen with black piping, lapels, and lining; her shoes, nothing less than a classic pair of nude pointed stilettos.

“Yeah, you can look at their work later and also meet them if you have the time. The go-see needs your attention as well, and I’m thinking you should start heading over to your brunch meeting.” Stella is always on point. “Any news from the boy yet?” And she manages to pull him in and out of stress by pushing the right buttons.

“He hasn’t replied. I sent him a text this morning but… Well…” Yifan sighs and shrugs, he smiles anyway when Stella chuckles light-heartedly.

“Well, he might be having a busy morning, though, right? You’ll survive. Now, get going if you don’t want to be late!” Stella playfully reminds him of the car waiting in front of the lobby.

 

 

Baekhyun is given a two-hour break after he finished dressing up the mannequins and he feels he did fairly well. Currently sitting at a café a block down the road, he pulls his phone out before even touching the plate of salmon potato salad. A smile grows on his face as he sees the thread revived to the top of his messages.

_To: Yifan_  
_11:16 AM “Oh, cool! Yeah, we can definitely meet up. I’m free on weekends. Or lunch everyday, or after work also… tbh.”_  
_11:17 AM “How long are you staying tho? ☺ ”_  
_11:17 AM “I had been busy the whole morning, I’m sorry for replying so late. >///< “_

He only puts his phone down when his stomach grumbles in protest.

 

 

The afternoon makes Baekhyun a nervous bet. He’s seated among a few other people and it tenses him up not having any clue about whether he’s got this in the bag or not. Some of them look pretty much like every other fashionista during Fashion Week, the others look sophisticated and learnt, and there are those who look like they’re cosy on the outside but shockingly in-depth and serious. He’d like to think he is a little above average. He might carry on more of the mainstream labels in his closet but he’s not ignorant, he always has just been safe with his line of work being purely business—

“Mr. Byun Baekhyun, please?” His thoughts are cut off at the mention of his name and he stands on wobbly legs.

 

 

Yifan hides a laugh as he reads through the resume of a certain Byun Baekhyun. This ought to be fun! “Oh shit!” He remembers the texts and hurriedly fishes his personal phone out of his pocket and grins at the sight of new messages.

_To: Byun Baekhyun_  
_2:37 PM “How does dinner tonight sound?”_  
_2:37 PM “Or a drink out? What do you feel like doing?”_  
_2:37 PM “I think I’m free by 7 tonight.”_

 

 

He’s back home a little after 4 in the afternoon. Taking off his jacket and toeing off his sneakers, he hops onto the fluffy couch and checks his phone.

_To: Yifan_  
_4:21 PM “I just got home! Yeah, dinner is good. Then, I guess, let’s figure out what to do after? A drink sounds nice too.”_  
_4:22 PM “I’ll be ready by 7:30. Is that okay?”_

A smile graces his lips as he sinks further into the cushions. He has time for a nap. The need to recharge settles in before the thought that he’s seeing Yifan again, after months of nothing but text messages and pictures, takes him into a jumble of nerves.

 

 

His message alert tone jerks him awake, he almost throws his phone into a wall.

_From: Yifan_  
_6:43 PM “7:30 is good. I’ll see you in a bit! ☺”_

_To: Yifan_  
_6:45 PM “Should I go casual or… I have no idea where we’re going. Heh ^_^”_

Baekhyun shoots up and hurries to his bathroom to take a refreshing bath as he contemplates on what to wear for this— was this a date? Or not? …Probably not. He dries off, quietly pondering until he has blow-dried his hair too and the whirring of the small handheld machine fades as well.

 

 

_To: Byun Baekhyun_  
_6:57 PM “Casual is alright. I’m looking to delve into authentic Korean food tonight. Do you have a favorite bbq place?”_

Yifan packs up after double-checking everything that had been on his schedule. He couldn’t help the smile creeping up his lips as he loosens his tie a little. He walks to the elevator, bidding the few people left in the office a soft “Good bye. Go home and have a good rest after dinner!” They smile back and tease him about a date, which makes his ears warm up. Yifan chuckles and tries to brush off the idea.

_To: Byun Baekhyun_  
_7:08 PM “Mind giving me your address? I just realized I don’t have any idea where in Seoul you live.”_

 

 

Dressed in his favorite white shirt, that one with an iconic box logo of a 90’s streetwear brand, black denim pants, a navy blue neoprene bomber jacket, and classic sneakers with three stripes, he thinks he’s ready. He wants an effortless but “hella good” look. He wants to be impressive, he wants his attention 100% of the time they will spend in a few minutes but of course he wouldn’t verbally tell him that. That’s what clothes and body language are for, right?

He waits patiently for the doorbell to ring. The longer he stares at his hair in the reflection seen on his windows, the more he feels like he’d overdone himself with his hair pushed back. His fingers keep drumming against the pillow he had on his lap as he slumped back on the couch.

Baekhyun sends Yifan his address. That’s when things sink in and it feels too real to digest. Yifan is here, and he’s coming for him. His mind couldn’t simply wrap itself around the idea and all of a sudden two months felt like too short of a time. He tries to rationalize what’s happening. He doesn’t want to panic when the man he met just once at an airport when his flight home got cancelled, arrives at his doorstep. He feels a little foolish. Is it his broken heart during the time they’d met that agreed to see Yifan again?

 

 

_Yifan had little to no chances of meeting Baekhyun again if he didn’t do anything to make it happen himself. His gut feeling told him it’s not so bad to ask for his number. To continue talking if they’re oceans apart wasn’t a bad idea at all seeing as Yifan knew he’d be coming to Korea real soon. He liked Baekhyun for reasons he couldn’t point out, at least not yet. It was too early to tell. They know almost nothing about each other and he’d like to keep it that way until they slip out of the comfort of polite conversational topics._

_Baekhyun was a little hesitant. Fresh out of a long-term relationship, he couldn’t say much about new found interests without the guilt from thinking he might simply be looking for something to ease his pain. He didn’t want that something to turn into a “someone”. He knew too well that it wouldn’t be fair. Then again, he thought Yifan would be miles away. They may constantly talk with each other in the beginning, but it would fade away too._

 

 

The soft tri-tone ring of the doorbell makes his heart beat faster than normal, and it gets more erratic as he makes his way to the door. The knob is cold, his palm is dampening, and on the other side is a man smiling genuinely at him, revealed as he pulls the door open. Baekhyun can only smile back, his earlier inner ramblings crumbling. Maybe, absolutely nothing is wrong with meeting him again.

“Hi,” Yifan nervously utters, his voice unsure with the way he feels under Baekhyun’s gaze.

He clears his throat, bites his lip to hold back a grin too wide, “Hi to you too! Want to come in or do you want to go get dinner now?”

“This a one time offer?” Yifan’s grin is toothy and playful.

Baekhyun chuckles and shakes his head, moves to the side and motions Yifan to enter. He leaves his shoes at the shoe rack by the entrance and follows suit as the shorter boy welcomes him into the living room. “I was just thinking you might be fresh out of the office and might want to rest a little? Besides, the dinner crowd is still heavy at this hour.”

Looking around the humble home felt like melting into your self. Baekhyun has that warmth he was already aware of, but it seems to radiate in every nook and space of the apartment. A glass of water is handed to him and Yifan finds himself getting too happy about the attention he’s receiving. A scratchy thanks pushes past his lips, he drinks half the glass and sits on the couch.

“Let’s go in about 30 minutes? Is that okay?” Baekhyun’s smile is too cute, Yifan thinks. He listens quietly and nods, “We can walk to this place—it’s really good!”

“Sure,” the neutral shade of the coffee table is almost the same as the wall behind the television, he notices. He smiles as he looks back up to meet Baekhyun’s eyes, “Are we gonna go drinking there too? I want to experience that. And street food.”

“Ah,” Baekhyun nods and gives him an approving thumbs up and chuckles, “I know just the places for all that!”

 

 

They sit opposite each other inside the small local eatery. The atmosphere inside is homely and the background sounds of daily conversations matching the clangs from the kitchen dig deep into familiarity. Baekhyun pulls his feet up to an Indian sitting position then grins at Yifan once he’s comfortable. “I had an interesting day,” he starts off, “Want to hear it?”

“You had been busy, I noticed,” Yifan casually tells Baekhyun with a soft chuckle, “I thought you just didn’t want to talk to me anymore.”

Baekhyun shakes his head and motions his hand as if to tell Yifan to disregard that thought, “I wouldn’t do that intentionally though,” the grin never leaves his face, “I mean, I thought you already know about me being more confrontational rather than passive?”

“That’s true,” his nod comes with an appreciative facial expression, “I guess, I was just thinking since it’s been months?”

“I understand, though,” Baekhyun is interrupted when their food is served, he thanks the familiar teenaged boy waiting tables, “You’re a really busy person and I’m not one to demand time.” His laugh comes off as shy and so does his smile. Yifan likes that side of him too.

“I’m happy, you understand, Baek,” he starts preparing the utensils and hands a broken off pair of chopsticks to Baekhyun who accepts it casually with a nod of thanks after pouring them both shots of liquor, “So, we were talking about your day?”

“Ah! Yeah! I might get a new job, one relatively close to where my heart really wants to go.” His smiles tonight are brighter, his eyes shining, “I did an interview and a talent test. Apparently, I can style appropriately for different occasions.”

Yifan attentively listens to every bit of Baekhyun’s story and smiles to himself. What would Baekhyun do if he finds out that his final interview is with him? For some reason, they never came to talking about where each other worked, what exactly they did, and the lifestyles they lead. Their professional backgrounds are a vague picture to each other.

Strangely enough, they have always zoomed into the heavier details over mundane facts of their routines. What made Baekhyun feel better when he’s stressed out, and out of all those things, which was his favorite thing to do? Yifan would know. And then Baekhyun, he has observed the way Yifan’s sentences flow out when he’s in different moods it has become a giveaway of how his day had been altogether. It gives him a leeway, a chance to approach him effectively, have him pull him in closer rather than push him away, and have him listen to him say the right things.

Baekhyun concludes his adventurous story telling, “I’m nervous for the final though, I’m bad at meeting new people. Well, new intimidating people. Bosses count.”

“Don’t be, I’m sure he’d be charmed,” he teasingly says, “It’s your thing, you know? Thought I already told you that before?”

“Yifan, where are you staying? I hope you’re getting enough rest. I’m curious. But if you don’t want to talk about it, it’s fine too,” Baekhyun blurts out before he could stop himself and he feels the stab on his side push the queasy feeling up his stomach and throat. He tries his best to shake it off and appear casual.

“It’s okay,” Yifan’s soft laughter resonates into sweet notes. “I’m staying at a hotel for now. My assistant is weighing out some options for apartments.”

“Assistant…” Baekhyun mumbles, “The corporate slave has his very own corporate slave.”

“Hey! I do not make her work her ass off, she’s just highly efficient and looks more like the boss than I do,” his eyes widen and waits for Baekhyun’s reaction before he says anything further. But at the rate that Baekhyun’s eyes analyze his facial expressions and how they play out, he knows he’d easily catch up.

“Yifan?” He treads on words, nervous to pry into Yifan’s life. Are they friends? Do they have the right to know of these things? This is more of touching reality than escaping into their conversations.

“Yeah?” He puts more meat on Baekhyun’s bowl and offers him a bite of spicy rice cakes.

“Don’t they only send high-ranking people out to other countries to manage long-term projects?” he nibbles on the tip of the chopsticks as he chews then mumbles to himself, “Is it okay to talk about this?”

Yifan nods and eats some more, “Well, I used to wonder why we never did, but I guessed you just weren’t interested in those details and I didn’t want to bring it up. It was actually a nice fresh feeling not having to talk about careers but it doesn’t mean I’m hiding anything from you.”

Baekhyun looks intently at him, “Then?”

“Well, I’m appointed Country Head for our new team here in South Korea.” Yifan quickly mumbles out, the back of his ears burning.

“So your bosses sent you here to be a boss also?” Baekhyun’s tone is teasing simply because he likes seeing Yifan squirm in his seat like a giant toddler, “Of what company exactly?”

“Heard of Black-on-black? We’re launching in a matter of time, we’re just straightening things out—“ Yifan chuckles softly then pauses when Baekhyun’s face pales, he grins, “I saw your application on my desk today.”

“No— No…” Baekhyun shakes his head, “Are you serious.”

“You’re not happy,” the frown in Yifan’s voice is clear as a flashing neon sign, “While I was pretty excited and thought it was amazing how things are basically bringing us together—”

“This is not bringing us together, Yifan,” Baekhyun defends weakly, sighing in defeat, “You’re going to be my indirect boss, it’s going to look bad.”

To say that Yifan understands is a little reaching. They eat in silence afterwards, trying to figure out what could be so wrong. He’s a totally different person at work from what Baekhyun knows him as. He clears his throat and gauges Bakehyun’s reaction then speaks, “Mind telling me what you’re thinking?”

“I just feel like I’ll be overshadowed, I guess. Even if I’ll do good on my own,” he puckers his lips and huffs out a disgruntled groan, “If people find out we’ve known each other for a while before I got the job, it wouldn’t reflect well on you nor on me.”

“My assistant knows about you,” Yifan replies, “She’s known you ever since I’ve flown back to China. She put the pile of CV’s on my desk.”

Baekhyun keeps mum, poking around on the food on his plate.

“This industry works through connections and skills, Baek,” he straightens up in his seat and looks at him, “You’re lucky if you have both. You have to forget about ideal scenarios in your head if you really want to make it.”

He realizes how much of an amateur he made himself look and takes a shot of the soju in his glass. He doesn’t want to speak and embarrass himself further. The excitement he has for this prospect job is suddenly crumbling.

“Then again, it’s all up to you. I’m encouraging you to do this for yourself,” the executive shrugs nonchalant, “but if you’re going to put what others think about you above how you know yourself to be, I’m telling you now. You’re too weak to stay even if you make it in.”

 

 

Baekhyun wakes up 15 minutes before the alarm goes off. Bundled up in the warmth of the thick duvet, he thinks as he stares at the white ceiling. Scenarios loop behind his eyes, of the worst things that could happen when he steps into the building. His final interview is today. Yifan hasn’t texted since they had last met and he couldn’t find it in himself to talk to him first either.

 

 

Yifan is right. Baekhyun figures he only has to make rules to always keep himself in place. He also guesses, that this situation would clear the air between the two of them. He has a lot of uncertainties to still think through before assuming from the signals that Yifan blatantly throws his way. He still feels irrationally emotional and delving into them puts him off track until now. The last thing he wants is to be unfair with someone of such decency.

It’s only been a couple of months. Maybe, what is considered rebound is if he tried to cover up what Joonmyun had left behind with someone else’s clear intentions? Maybe, he’s been looking for excuses to keep Yifan at a distance so that it’s safe to say he has been guarded enough. Maybe, when he can finally say he has moved on, nobody would take it against him and can fall in love again with a pure conscience. Baekhyun feels himself shrink as he realizes how much he has changed since he went home.

He used to never give a mind about what people think of him. Moving forward, he only sees himself to be vulnerable and constantly seeking validation. Two things he detests, both eating him up, and both he didn’t want to face alone.

 

 

_To: Yifan_  
_4:23 PM “I signed the contract. Thanks for helping me decide! ;)”_

 

 

He’s startled when his phone rings and he reads the name flashed on the screen. “Yeah?” he answers as casually as he can.

“Congratulations, Baek!” Yifan’s excited voice is cute, it makes him smile, “You’re not upset with me anymore, right?”

“I wasn’t upset with you, I just had a lot to think about over the weekend,” Baekhyun chastises, “I was thinking of properly thanking you with dinner, though. You up for it after you’re off of work?”

“Ah,” the frown is evident in his voice, “I’m staying til late tonight, Baek. I’m sorry, but what about lunch tomorrow?” Baekhyun is silent for a couple of moments, “Baek?”

“Well, I was thinking of making dinner at my place?” it’s more of an excuse that he came up with.

“Really? But you don’t have to go through all that trouble,” Yifan sighs quietly when the other insists stubbornly, “Well, okay, I’ll have Stella free my evening for tomorrow.”

Grinning, Baekhyun expresses his excitement through teasing Yifan about being the boss and doing whatever the hell he wants at any time. They banter over the phone until Baekhyun is reminded of that reality. He hears a soft voice on Yifan’s end of the line asking him if he is ready for the next meeting. He lets him go, calls him “Mister Wu” and goes on a stroll before heading home.

 

 

Yifan is totally certain Baekhyun has already been assigned to a project since Monday of the past week but he has never seen him around yet. They still talk sometimes, when they’re not too busy. In other words, when Baekhyun is sure Yifan won’t be in the same premises he’s at—or when Baekhyun would be out doing store visits to get acquainted with the people he’ll be working with in the future.

He’s out having lunch with his department when Yifan first spots him. His colleagues stop mid-laugh, smiled and politely bow to the person standing behind him, he fears what he’d be seeing once he turns and the only thing to do is get a hold of himself. He knows it would have only been a matter of time. He stands up and smiles up at Yifan casually, greets him a good afternoon and bows the same way the others did.

Baekhyun partially regrets asking him to join them for lunch. Yifan is settled happily a few seats away, eating and cozying up with his team as he listens to their stories and some feedback about work. It’s a nice encounter all in all but Yifan has to leave sooner for a meeting, and he did not exactly plan on dining out. So, he bids them a shy goodbye—a contrast from how strict and serious he’s at work, and smiles with his eyes arching into cute crescents, “I’ll see you later, Baek, yeah?”

He freezes in his seat with wide eyes and feels a lump form in his throat. He’s getting irrationally angry that he could cry.

 

 

He doesn’t see him later, or the next day, until the following week. Baekhyun doesn’t always reply texts, and at times ignores the phone calls. The last thing he needs is for his credibility to be questioned. He works hard, knowing well that he should prove he deserves the spot. Whether or not he has known Yifan, he’d work his ass off all the same.

It is clear that Baekhyun does not want to deal with the aftermath of Yifan calling him by his nickname during that lunch. He noticed some side eyeing, raised eyebrows, of course, some sarcastic questions thrown his way, but he wouldn’t have minded it all if they would not bring personal feelings and opinions to work. He isn’t entitled to telling people what to feel and think, it wasn’t part of his job description. But when he’s laying down what needs to be accomplished by the team, it’s a different matter.

It doesn’t take much to tick him off. He has been honest, and he guesses that’s pretty much all he could do at this point—doesn’t mean he wouldn’t blow off in his head every time anybody asks him about how he knows Yifan.

 

 

He hurries to the empty elevator and quickly pressed the button to his floor. The doors are closing in on each other when somebody chases and presses the up button from the outside, causing the doors to slide open again. Baekhyun curses under his breath of today not being as cooperative as the others. Yifan notices him on the reflections and smiles half-heartedly. Baekhyun knows he’s noticed but he doesn’t want to initiate conversation.

Yifan being Yifan, his voice is soft but resonates quite the authority within the small enclosed space, “It’s so difficult to get a hold of you, I’m pretty sure you’re avoiding me.” Baekhyun doesn’t reply and continues listening, “It’s getting annoying, to be honest. And yet, I still want to know if you’re doing okay. I don’t think it’s fair that I’m getting this kind of attitude from you. I’m not saying this as your boss. I was hoping you won’t forget whom you met at the airport a few months ago.”

Baekhyun walks to his office. He can hear the usual laughter chaos that happens in their department’s creatives and production floor and thought he might as well just go and hangout with them today while he does his work.

 

 

“Obviously, you two need to talk,” Minseok says, “You needed time to figure things out, by the looks of it, you’ve almost got it down. But there are things you want to know that only Mister Wu can answer, and that’s why you should not be avoiding him.”

Baekhyun whines and makes a face at the Creative Director, “But he doesn’t understand.”

“Exactly,” the smile was too beautiful you’d half-think he wasn’t being sarcastic. “Look at it this way. He doesn’t care if people think you’re hanging off his arm for your career because he believes you don’t need him for you to succeed.”

He hates the fact that Minseok is way too chill that he doesn’t leave you any room to argue, “It’s actually me who has to understand that and acknowledge what I can do a little more.”

“He will open up doors for you if you’re worth it. Doesn’t matter if you’re connected in someway outside of work,” the way he talks about Yifan is also very certain, Minseok chuckles, “You’re wondering, your eyes don’t really hide what you’re thinking.”

“It’s just that the more I think about it, I realize we’re way too different and it intimidates me,” the thing with talking to anybody from the Production Team is that they’re honest, they’re the least judgmental type of people, and they’re not going to talk unless you tell them everything to consider, “And I’m curious how you got to know him so well.”

“He’s where he is right now because his boss saw his potential,” Baekhyun puts his work down and leans back against the seat, “For one thing, he used to dislike what he does but the way he handled everything despite the lack of liking for some of his responsibilities took him out of his slump. Obviously, he’s doing better now. You’re not all that different from him, in my opinion.”

Arms wrap around Minseok’s waist and urges to pull him away, “Sorry, Baek, I gotta steal him for a bit. We’re done with some comprehensives.” Han waves at him with Minseok’s hand as they walk away to check up on their finished work. Baekhyun is left to think by himself.

 

 

Baekhyun finds Yifan comfortably seated at the balcony of his apartment on a Saturday morning. He invited him over for brunch, which the other man had happily accepted. It’s nice to see him in casual clothing. It’s more of him as Baekhyun’s friend, much more familiar, less daunting. He brings the plates over and sets them down on the small round table facing the cityscape before sitting beside Yifan on the cushioned bench against the wall.

“This looks delicious,” Yifan comments as soon as the aroma invades the air he breathes, he smiles brightly, “Is this another one of those recipes you found online but made better?”

“Yeah, I substituted some ingredients to my liking since I’m not a fan of cucumber,” he grins childishly, “Come to think of it, you never told me what you don’t like or if you got any allergies. That’s pretty important, isn’t it? Since I like making you some food.”

“I didn’t want to impose, nor limit what you want to make,” he starts digging in while Baekhyun watches his reaction. He scoops up a huge spoonful and smiles that adorable curve of his lips with the matching twitch of his eyes. Once he has swallowed that first bite, he looks at the boy beside him curiously, “Is there anything that you wanted to talk about?”

He shyly rubs at his nape and avoids Yifan’s gaze, “Yeah, actually, I wanted to apologize.”

The breeze is relaxing, cool among the warmth of sunrays that fall through the clouds. It’s a perfect weekend morning and it helps calm the nerves. Yifan couldn’t be bothered to stop eating to respond properly and it is honestly endearing. He hums as he chews and spurs Baekhyun to just continue while he listens. Things seem easier in that moment.

“I’m sorry for being a brat the past few weeks,” he tries hard, convinces himself that he isn’t swallowing his pride, that he was only doing what is right and what is due. Baekhyun loves that Yifan is attentive, understanding, and knows what type of stubborn he can possibly be. He appreciates the fact that Yifan will never intentionally make him feel inferior, despite his faults and problematic arguments.

The way expressions spread across Yifan’s face warms his chest. He feels it crawl to the tips of his toes, his slender fingers, and turns his cheeks pink up to the roots of his hairs on the back of his neck as they stand in shivers. It’s an exquisite sensation from the build up to the aftermath. The innocence of pure emotions materializing right in front of him and yet he basks in the vulnerability.

“Yifan,” Baekhyun almost whines, the grin plastered on his face makes it difficult for the taller man to look away, “pay attention to me.”

His laugh is mischievous to the ears yet he indulges Baekhyun anyway. It’s a guilty pleasure, he realizes, but the guilt is beginning to dissipate, “Alright, I’m listening.”

“I was wrong for putting you off the way I did. I mean, when we met I was really happy. Happier when we got to keep in touch.” Baekhyun grins cheekily and chuckles, “I didn’t really care what you did for a living, so why did it have to matter now, right? At least, not outside of work, I guess—”

Yifan leans in and kisses the top of his head which makes Baekhyun pause, “You should know by now, that I would still be all friendly with you when I see you at work.”

Watching the grin on Yifan’s face makes him light-heartedly laugh, “I figured— Kind of. Yeah.”

“This means I can take you out for lunches and stuff now, right?” Yifan continues eating small bites with a grin as he speaks and makes comments on the food in between, This is so good. “I’ll also ask people form Production or your department to come with if you want. I have some close friends there whom I think you’ll also get along with.”

Baekhyun agrees easily, figures Yifan likes to keep things real and casual as much as he can. He has a line drawn between professional and personal connections that he always keeps in check wherever he is. He likes it. The same way he likes seeing Yifan in the corporate setting. Maybe, if he just follows through, he’ll be fine. He’s the one who doesn’t want any drama, he should be the first to not entertain any of it.

“You’ve got an interesting thinking face there, Baek,” Yifan offers him a bite of the food from his plate which Baekhyun accepts, he continues clearing things up to get them on the same level of comfort, “All you have to do is make sure you oversee nothing, get things done at top quality, make sure nothing goes wrong— and if shit does go down you should know what to do to work around it. If you show consistency, people would stop questioning you as a person, they’ll respect you whatever your background or whoever your connections, and wherever the seasons bring. It sounds easy, but it’s not all times that things are on your side that’s why you have to be on your toes.”

“Thank you,” Baekhyun replies with a playful grin, “I’ll be good, I promise.”

“I know,” Yifan smiles brightly and takes a sip from his drink.

They spend the whole day together. It is pretty much uneventful after they’ve talked things out. Baekhyun hasn’t felt this happy in a while. Although he thinks that for one thing, it should bother him that Yifan has grown a little touchy and seems to be forgetting about personal space as the hours pass. He let the kiss on his head go, thinking nothing of it but an act on impulse. Remembering how he’s the only one nonplussed about the instance, and then Yifan’s sincere, comforting smile as he pulled back.

 

 

The following weeks have been expectedly busy, as the turn of season is approaching. After the successful launch of the flagship store was held, the pressure continues on if not more intense. The first collection is received in the market with vigor and the new found energy fuelled what’s to come after. They have a month left to complete the conceptualization to the execution. To present their work as curated wearable art pieces, in collaboration with fresh visual artists, they have in-depth work to do with the featured artists themselves.

Baekhyun has woken up to a new perspective in this project. He knows it isn’t in him to critic art, to know what’s good and not based on theory and technique, and that he can only distinguish a very subjective part of the process which is to say what’s good from what isn’t going to work on the campaign.

On a night when he finishes early, he contacts Yifan. It isn’t stress but the new things he’s surrounded with that’s positively overwhelming him. He needs to let it all out, a soundboard to get his thoughts in the open and sorted.

_From: Yifan_  
_7:13 PM “Come to my office for now? I’m still wrapping up. I let Stella off early to get checked and for some rest, she looked too pale for normal.”_

The offices are still very busy. He’s had small talk with a couple of people in the elevator who are running around to get things done and delivered on time. He likes when people are busy, mostly the look of concentration when they’re doing something they put their heart into. Like the way Yifan looks seated at his table. He saunters into the office and walks over to him.

“Want me to order take out instead?” Baekhyun suggests, and Yifan immediately declines.

“No, I’m almost done,” he looks up at the small man in front of his desk and smiles, “I’d like to be taken out to dinner so I can relax for a while.”

The glint in his eyes is clear as Seoul's spring skyline—crisp, bright, and bursting of colorful emotions. He’s at that point where he no longer cowers to hurriedly cover up what he doesn't want Yifan to see. "Also, how about coffee after?" He offers.

"Yes! Definitely," Yifan is done for the day. He watches him pack up and lock his drawers. The large hands take his and the man pulls him into a quiet embrace. Baekhyun can feel his face squish against the other's chest, the fabric of his pristine button up soft and smooth. He smells of expensive perfume, subtle and addictive. And as his arms looped around the others firm build, he hears Yifan's content sigh along with the squeeze around his body. With Yifan’s warmth overwhelmingly surrounding him this way, he feels like there's nothing to be afraid of.

"I think we should go," Baekhyun mumbles, struggling in the other’s arms as he looks up, arms refusing to let go.

A palm curves along his cheek to his jaw, the warmth and fuzz spreading down his neck, “Can I take you somewhere fancy for once? It’s a Friday night. I think everywhere else is going to be full. That may or may not be just an excuse to get you to say yes.”

“For once?” Baekhyun knows too well that once he gives in, Yifan will make it a habit. Like the way he coos at him and holds him in his arms a few moments too long. He knows that it probably wouldn’t have been if he fought it off, but he never has the heart to.

Yifan is naturally always, and very sincere. It’s ultimately a breeze to trust him. Baekhyun remembers how it has been easier to get a move on with the other’s encouragements and vibe. He can be serious but he has a happy disposition. He is appreciative and knows how to see from another person’s point of view. He isn’t very sensitive, more of a thinker than a person who thrives in feelings, but it works well.

Baekhyun feels it’s safe to say he’s in the clear. Half a year after heartbreak, he now feels a sense of liberations in which Yifan is a huge part of. He eventually admits he’s the dependent type. In one of their conversations in the car ride home, they brought it up. He answers questions thrown at him with as much honestly as he can muster, not leaving out details that would greatly affect how he feels.

 

 

_“I feel like I was merely a phase. Then he realized he wanted to have kids of his own with a person who can naturally give them to him. Not that he never introduced me to his parents. I’ve met them, have had a few dinners and lunches but he’s the type to crave their acknowledgement. He wanted them to take pride in him more than he wanted to keep our relationship. It’s a slap in the face but I can’t blame him.”_

_The night air was cool but it didn’t sting. The stale cup of coffee in his hand only served to busy his hands and rid the anxiety lingering in his joints._

_“If I see him again, I think I’ll be able to handle it.”_

_“When I see him again, I want to smile at him and show that I’m fine. I know he would have never wished me otherwise. I also want to know that I’m alright, that I’ve moved on.”_

_Yifan listened intently through every realization that Baekhyun was able to conjure. He took him to an arcade and got on a few games that he didn’t know how to play to make him laugh. They collected tickets and gave them away to a certain kid who wanted to win a toy. Then went for slushies at the convenience store across Baekhyun’s apartment building before they called it a day and parted ways._

_For the first time in months, Baekhyun didn’t need to escape his thoughts. Slumber was sweet and the morning after felt fresher than the blossoms of the season._

 

 

Things have slowed down and Baekhyun knows it’s because of him. He reciprocates what Yifan gives but doesn’t initiate. Pieces are coming together and he knows where this could lead, it’s obvious and he knows he wouldn’t say no.

They were out for lunch in one of the district’s buffets. Yifan insisted and now he’s in line, asking about what’s in the dishes. Grabbing a few of them and filling his plate with mostly fresh fish, vegetables, and chicken, with the recommended pasta dish that looks way too appetizing.

“Baekhyun?” it’s a familiar voice but he couldn’t place where he has heard it before. He looks up and finds himself seeing Joonmyun’s mother across the buffet table, smiling fondly at him with a plate of pastry in her hands, “I thought you looked familiar. I wouldn’t have mistaken. It’s good to see you again.”

He smiles at her and realizes she has been very accepting and warm. She would have already known how things ended, but he doesn’t feel any pity emanating from the way she looks at him. For a time, she had seen him as her own son. And for a time, she had been thankful that someone can make Joonmyun as happy as they used to be. “It’s nice to see you again, too…” his sentence fades out, doesn’t know how to end what previously could have been easy enough with her insisting to be called mom as well. “Have you been doing great? How’s Mr. Kim?”

“We’ve been good, dear. A lot of things have changed but we’re getting by fine,” she reaches over to pat him on the shoulder and give it a light squeeze, the comforting type that seems to be default to mothers, “I’m hoping you are better, as well?”

He nods and smiles brightly with the confidence to say that he is doing great, that things may have not been all that bad but dealing with some changes can be tricky and confusing.

They get interrupted with the voice he used to wake up to every morning, “Mom, there you are, I—“ Joonmyun stops midsentence when he notices his mother not paying attention to him but to someone else.

“Hi,” Baekhyun greets with a cheeky smile.

“Hey,” there is a slight pause as he stared down, “It’s nice to see you glowing and happy,” those words don’t feel like what he imagined to hear from an ex-lover. If anything, he would have been okay with a nod and a smile.

“Ah, same for you,” with the same unwavering smile, he motions towards the general direction of where he supposedly sits with Yifan and bids Joonmyeon and his mom polite goodbyes, “I think you two might be busy, so I’ll go ahead. It’s nice seeing you and Mrs. Kim! Send my regards to Mr. Kim, yeah?”

The walk back to the table seem like a trance. Yifan doesn’t ask about it, probably already figured things out, but Baekhyun initiates the conversation about meeting his ex-boyfriend’s mother at the most random circumstances.

“How do you feel?” It’s a simple question.

“I’m a little surprised that I feel okay.” And it deserves nothing less than a straight to the point answer.

 

 

They begin to go out more often. As things progress with less holdbacks, Baekhyun has a growing doubt which he feels is misplaced and is lurking around at the wrong time. The dinners and lunches that used to happen only when they both have the time have become a thing they would make the time and effort to meet up for. Adding up to also doing groceries together, going shopping, and wine nights at each other's apartments that end up with one of them staying the night.

It has been an expected turn out. Baekhyun is certain he would not find any reason to not like Yifan. It’s only a matter of time, a few dates, more conversations they wouldn't have with anyone else, shared secrets, and him telling it all as it is. Not a day passes that they don't learn something new about each other. Down to the littlest things that he couldn't miss to memories piling up higher than the walls he built, the same walls that Yifan had replaced with a different sense of security.

He’s able to open up to Yifan about what really broke him in every sense. He feels safe. Baekhyun has never felt an ounce of judgment from him even after conversations about thoughts hidden in the deepest corners of his soul and he wants Yifan to feel the same.

Yifan's apartment has traces of Baekhyun. It’s easy to fit into the picture with Yifan's blank slate of a home in the busy district of Gangnam. They've found that home decor shopping is as therapeutic as groceries and clothing, with less fuss and no overspending. And tonight, after spending a couple of hours at the furniture shop, they end the day with another one of those cozy dinners at home where in Yifan makes something simple and nice.

_From: Joonmyun_  
_11:10 AM “Baekhyun?”_

He stares at the message and wonders what could be up. Sitting at the kitchen island as he waits for Yifan to finish making dinner, he sighs and pouts.

“He sent me a message just now,” it’s a soft mumble followed by a sigh.

“What did he say?” Yifan grabs a large plate to share with him as soon as it’s done.

Baekhyun shows him the message. The thread is new. What used to be thousands of messages exchanged, got deleted, and now revived to a mere call for his name. “Is it okay if I respond? I honestly have no idea what to do. I never really thought he’d contact me again. To me there’s nothing to talk about.”

Yifan looks at him as he sits down after setting the table for their meal, “Well, you were friends before you became lovers, isn’t that right? You may not be as close as you used to be but it never hurts to be civil. I can’t tell you what to do as much as I want to help. I have absolutely nothing to do with what you used to have with him.”

He feels soft lips land on his temple with a light squeeze to the back of his neck. He sighs heavier this time and nods, leaning in and hugging Yifan’s waist for more comfort. “Let’s eat first, yeah? We don’t want this to get cold.”

 

 

Baekhyun thinks it’s weird. He’s in the passenger seat of Yifan’s car, driving to the Kim’s for Joonmyeon’s mother’s birthday celebration. He couldn’t say no when she invited him herself. She knows they have broken up in good terms and thinks there shouldn’t be any problem—except Baekhyun is afraid.

For the longest time, he has not seen their college friends and it saves him that evening when they arrived one by one. They all catch up and meet the new people who are now part of their circle as friends’ boyfriends and girlfriends. A couple of them have even gotten engaged. He sees and listens to them talk more about how what used to be just plans and far out aspirations are starting to become a reality. He unexpectedly finds a happy note in what he has anticipated to be an awkward evening.

He excuses himself for the bathroom to freshen up. He calls Yifan to ask if he’s home. He tells him he’s tired but he couldn’t leave just yet, it seems too early and everyone’s still very energetic except him. He hears some encouragement from the other end of the line and finds the will to come back out and get through the night.

He gets some food and drinks to replenish their table before coming back and slightly panics at the sight. With a lone spot empty, he has no choice but to sit beside Joonmyeon. There are things he’d much better not know about him anymore. When Yifan said be civil, he doesn’t expect it to be a challenge. Nonetheless, they talk. If anything, their friends don’t react and he is very grateful for that.

“You’re looking great, Baek,” Joonmyun says, “I heard you got a job at a fashion brand?”

Baekhyun fiddles with the food on his plate with a fork, “Yeah, been working there for a few months now. It’s refreshing. Sort of a new kind of stress but I’m having fun.”

The other man nods and smiles, “That’s great, at least one of us is doing good.”

“Why— What about you though? How are things going?”

“Remember when I closed a deal with a franchise of a café so I could set it up inside the small book store with a gadget store?” Joonmyun looks at him expectantly. He knows Baekhyun wouldn’t forget that so easily. If anyone knew how much he waivered over his own skills and plans, it had been Baekhyun to push him to make ends meet and find the best deal he could find without losing. He believed in him the most. “I made a mistake on that one. I got off track. It went bad.”

“Is that why you came home?” Baekhyun offers him a shot of the drink their table’s been passing around.

“Well, that… And I was supposed to introduce a girl to my parents. But it sort of went downhill since the start-up didn’t work out.” He downs the drink and winces at the bitterness that lines his throat, “Nobody ever supported me the same way you did.”

It’s a soft mumble that Baekhyun can pretend he doesn’t hear, “Did your parents already expect her? Or was is supposed to be a surprise?”

“You know me so well,” he chuckles, “It was supposed to be a surprise. Which became an advantage, at least. I didn’t have to explain why things didn’t work out. I don’t think they need to know that I’m much more of a failure than what they think.”

“Well, you can take this as an opportunity to grow on your own,” he pats his shoulder albeit awkwardly, “It might be romantic to go through struggles with someone along the way but it’s as fulfilling to be a stronger individual. You’re not a failure as long as you keep trying. I say it’s too early to give up.”

Joonmyun looks at Baekhyun and hugs him tight. Frozen in his seat, Baekhyun lets those familiar arms engulf him in what used to be the most comforting embraces that he received. For some reason, he feels nothing. He expects himself to drown in doubts and memories that he craves when everything was still fresh, but finds no other emotion than pity and guilt that he feels that way.

 

 

He wakes up to a Monday morning in Yifan’s bed. Wrapped in the fluffy, thick blankets, he buries himself deeper to try to get back into slumber. The room is always cozy. It has an atmosphere that makes his heart swell. He couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear. The pristine and manly scent that lingers spelled Yifan and it drowns him everywhere in the apartment, from the sheets and pillows, to the sweaters that Baekhyun had been lent a few times. A little bit of embarrassment has colors his cheeks at the thought of every time he falls asleep against Yifan’s bare chest.

“It’s so cold, why won’t you wear anything aside from boxers? What if you get sick?”

Baekhyun curls into Yifan as he is pulled into a tight embrace, "You'll warm me up, anyway," he teases with a grin, "With the way you cling in your sleep, there's no chance of getting cold." They laugh lightly, he wraps his arms around the other's firm torso and tangles his legs with his. It’s a sweet development that had taken a bold admission to occur. He plants a kiss on the corner of Yifan's lips before hiding into the crook of his neck. He closes his eyes and goes back to sleep.

 

 

_The morning after he came home to Yifan from the party, he expected a hangover in the very least, a lingering thought hanging above his head when he gets back into his senses. But there was none, there is only the morning view he knew he could easily get used to. Yifan slept like the angel he is except with a hint of his childlike mannerisms. Baekhyun scoots closer as quietly as he can, hazy remembrances of last night making him blush to his toes._

_"You could have called me to pick you up—" Baekhyun jumped right into his arms the moment Yifan opened the door to let him in, words fading in exchange for silence. The smell of alcoholic beverage and grilled meat stuck to his suit made the taller man chuckle while he held onto him protectively. Baekhyun could only rub his cheek against the firm clothed chest with a tender smile on his face._

_"Yifan," he mumbled, arms tightening around the man in needy craving._

_"Yeah?" long fingers glided through his hair, slow and smooth. He felt a kiss on top of his head._

_"Hmm...” he looked up to meet those deep eyes, the ones that look at only him with raw sincerity, those that smile by the mere attention that they give and get from each other. Baekhyun’s voice hinted of nasal whining and cute undertones, “I'm happy. Really, really, really, really, really… really… happy…"_

_Yifan happily planted another kiss, this time on his forehead, as he tried to hold back a yawn but failed. Baekhyun bounced on his toes and clung impossibly closer, nodding and still restlessly burying his face into the other’s chest, feeling the rumbling inside as Yifan chuckled._

_Baekhyun woke up well rested as the sun peeked along the horizon. The usual bright rays he witnessed on weekends have yet to slither in between the shades that are pulled shut. The glow of a gentle purple and orange dawn gave too little light into the room, giving him a new look of a peaceful silhouette. He adored stolen moments of Yifan. Just like this one, he would stare and really look until every detail is engraved in his memory. There was vague familiarity and impression and it felt rather homely._

_As the seconds pass, Baekhyun falls deeper. He realizes this was exactly how it felt when he first saw Yifan in that empty room at the airport, the same warmth he had exuded under the dim lights and the flurry of snow in the background. Fall is approaching again, it has never been this welcomed._


End file.
